


the first light

by Misila



Category: Free!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Romance, Soft Saturday, harurinalia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-20
Updated: 2018-10-20
Packaged: 2019-08-04 23:21:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16356242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Misila/pseuds/Misila
Summary: “What,” Haruka starts, speaking for the first time since walking out of the hotel, his voice halfway between a whine and a growl, “is so special we need to wake up at six in the morning.”“Stop grumbling. You’ll have plenty of time to sleep in the plane.”





	the first light

**Author's Note:**

> I want to thank the rinharu discord server for motivating my lazy ass to finish something I started three months ago. The mood is so soft I couldn't not to ;v;

 

 

 

 

Rin awakens to the alarm of his phone.

His brain barely has the time to process the sound, though, for nearly simultaneously a hand lands on his face and, as if a single blow weren’t enough, proceeds to mercilessly keep slapping him.

“Wh―” it takes Rin a couple of seconds to remember, roughly as long as he needs to grab a warm wrist before it falls on his cheek a sixth time― “Haru, that’s my _face_.”

Judging by Haruka’s struggle to free his hand, he doesn’t care. Rin sits up before letting go, opening his eyes to the still dark room in search of his phone— he knows why he set this alarm, but as his friend’s arm retreats into the cocoon of hogged blankets he’s burrowed himself into (again) Rin wants nothing but to throw his phone at the closest wall.

“Turn it off,” Haruka grunts. A pillow disappears, swallowed in the microhabitat he’s trapped into; and Rin is proud he’s managed to keep his own so far. “Rin.”

Rin obeys before the insistent beeping gives him a headache, but upon rubbing at his eyes to get rid of his sleepiness he pokes at the lump Haruka is with his foot— perhaps a bit too harshly, but he slept with half his body uncovered thanks to his friend and Haruka has more than enough layers protecting him anyway.

(And after wanting the mattress to swallow him whole the first night and making so many excuses to delay the unavoidable until Haruka fell asleep only a few hours ago, Rin is finally coming to terms with the idea that, against all odds, sharing a bed with Haruka won’t kill him, not more than the mess in his heart will.)

“Oi, don’t fall asleep again.”

“It’s too early.” Rin aims now for Haruka’s ribs and the lump shudders. “Don’t tickle me.”

“Get up.”

“It’s too—… Rin.”

“No. Come on, it’s not that early.”

Rin hears the deep breath Haruka takes, but he halts when the silence stretches for five seconds before he finally speaks, voice muffled beneath the pile of stolen blankets.

“But I’m jetlagged.”

Now it’s Rin the one who needs to count to ten before inevitably going back to poking Haruka’s side.

“Like hell you are.” Haruka grunts, but he finally moves beneath the covers, if only to escape the tickling. “Haru, get up. If we don’t hurry we’ll miss it.”

With some difficulty Haruka frees himself from the blankets, a mild glare pining Rin to the mattress in an attempt to make him change his mind. And he would probably succeed, were his hair not a mess of dishevelled black locks at war over which direction they’re supposed to point at.

Rin can barely hold back his laughter.

“You have time to brush your hair.”

Haruka’s eyes narrow to blue slits. “You probably don’t,” he shoots back.

And Rin knows he could have woken his friend up in a gentler way and is perfectly aware his own hair is an even bigger mess, but that doesn’t stop him from throwing the only pillow still on his side of the bed at Haruka’s face.

 

 

 

“What,” Haruka starts, speaking for the first time since walking out of the hotel, his voice halfway between a whine and a growl, “is so special we need to wake up at six in the morning.”

They’ve made only half the way to their destination and Rin considers Haruka being still awake an achievement. He glances at his friend, at the scowl barely illuminated by the clarity preceding a cold day, and despite it’s the third day they spend here part of Rin can’t believe Haruka actually agreed to accompany him in a surprise trip to the opposite hemisphere.

“Stop grumbling. You’ll have plenty of time to sleep in the plane.” Rin whips his neck, refuses to stop looking ahead even as Haruka’s stare drills holes in his back.

(Because he’s also a bit in denial about Haruka going along with his plan instead of having the rest he needs, and the more Rin thinks about it the sillier his idea sounds, but he can’t chicken out now that they have nearly crossed the Harbour Bridge.)

“…I thought you’d want to run.”

Between the wind whistling through his hair and Haruka’s quietness, the words nearly fall down the bridge, wasted and unheard. But Rin picks them up before they fall to the black sea, eyes wide as he turns around to peek at Haruka between dishevelled red locks.

“I mean,” he starts, surprise quickly dissolving into a grin, “we can run. I just didn’t want to leave you behind.”

Despite Haruka’s complaints, Rin doesn’t regret waking up so early, even if it’s only because there are very few people other than them on the bridge. Haruka takes him by surprise by starting running and passing him, but it doesn’t take Rin long to catch up and take the lead. Which is good, because Haruka doesn’t even know where they’re going.

And still, as he overtakes Rin again, nearly at the end of the bridge, he doesn’t look lost or vulnerable anymore— not the way he did two days ago at the park, and definitely not the way he did as he dragged his feet to shove clothes at random into his bag the morning Rin showed up at his doorstep with a knot in his throat and a ridiculous plan in mind.

As Rin speeds up to pass him one last time, Haruka looks brighter than the Sun that has yet to breach.

 

 

 

In hindsight, perhaps running nearly a kilometre without warning up before even having breakfast isn’t the best idea they have ever had. They don’t stop until they reach their destination, sweaty and panting as they try to catch their breath.

(In Rin’s defence, Haruka brought it up first.)

But in spite of his pulse echoing in his eardrums, Rin can see the outline of a smile in Haruka’s profile; and it’s small, but it’s also the first one since they went to the Aquatic Centre and Rin wants to think dragging Haruka across half the world was worth it after all.

“Where now?” Haruka heads back towards the road, halts at Rin’s raised eyebrow. “…Here?”

Rin nods, half-sitting on the railing of the lookout, and Haruka’s bewilderment makes him feel like an idiot once again.

But then Haruka looks around, realises they aren’t on a random terrace; his eyes widen when he turns towards the railing again, and Rin follows his gaze, sees the Opera House and the dozens of buildings on the other side of the harbour paling as the sky finally shifts to a lighter blue and the clouds dye purple.

Haruka’s quiet steps catch Rin’s attention; he makes no remark, but Rin sees the small, perfectly round _o_ his lips shape into.

Against the morning sky Haruka looks content, fearless as he watches dawn take over the bay.

No, he’s definitely not the same as when they arrived.

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> ...and then the last scene of s2ep12 happens. I looove writing missing scenes :3
> 
> What did you guys think about it?


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